Our Cuba division is headed by Suzanne Carlson, president of Carlson Maritime Travel and a leading expert on Cuba Travel and Cuba Maritime Services. Suzanne's expertise in Cuba dates back years when she was on the board of directors and was an integral part of International Port Corp., a Miami-based shipping company that worked diligently for years to legally send the first ship in decades from the U.S. to Cuba. (July 2012).
Suzanne has spoken as an authority on legal travel to Cuba on several panels including the Florida Bar International Law Seminar "CUBA 2014: What the U.S. Legal and Business Communities Need to Know", sponsored by Gray Robinson Law Firm, Miami. She was a distinguished guest speaker on "Forum on the New Cuba Regulations 2015" held by Representative Kathy Castor, Tampa, Fl. Suzanne spoke as an authority on the Cuba Cultural Tourism panel at the St. Petersburg Conference on World Affairs. She was invited to speak at the U.N. in NYC at the Travel, Tourism, and Transformation Symposium on Sustainable Tourism Development, 2017. Suzanne was on the short list of invitees to the Cuban Embassy in Washington D.C. by the Cuban Ambassador to the U.S. for panel discussion on U.S. travel to Cuba 2018.
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Carlson Maritime is well-respected and well-recognized in Cuba for their broad range of contacts with all levels of Cuban society. Their close Cuban relationships range from everyday people to the President of Havanatur/Celimar with whom they hold a contract, to the Vice President of ICM (Institute of Cuban Music) and Commodore Escrich, the Commodore of the Hemingway Yacht Club.
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We are a proud member of the Hemingway Yacht Club and until U.S. policy changed, we worked to stengthen the relationship between the two countries' nautical communities. Our maritime division is no longer providing services until the present U.S. policy changes.
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We have been licensed by O.F.A.C, the U.S. Treasury Department, are presently OFAC compliant and are licesned with the Department of Commerce pertaining to vessel export to Cuba. Carlson Maritime Travel is contracted directly with HAVANATUR/Celimar the major government owned travel provider in Cuba for U.S. groups. Carlson Maritime Travel holds one of the first debit/credit card accounts being issued to U.S. companies by Stonegate Bank - now Centennial Bank who conduct business in Cuba and are authorized to wire funds for legal travel-related services directly to Cuba.
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Being licensed by both the U.S. and Cuba cuts out the "middle man". We choose our hotels, our restaurants, the sights and venues, we hand-pick our professional guides and you can be assured that we've been there with experience. Our close relationships with hoteliers, paladar owners, suppliers, and tour companies insures a personalized, meaningful and bespoke tour each time. Each one of our group departures is personally escorted to assure seamless, legal travel. We invite you to compare our prices, tour content, and service against any supplier.
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Let us show you this amazing, culturally rich country, up close and personal.
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United States Department of Commerce License / D1118969
Licensed Travel Service Provider to Cuba / CU-2014-307835-1
CARLSON, YOUR CUBA CONNECTION
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